EU/USA Agreement: cooperation in the regulation of civil aviation safety

The Committee on Transport and Tourism adopted the report by Theresa GRIFFIN (S&D, UK) on the draft Council decision on the conclusion, on behalf of the European Union, of an amendment to the Agreement between the United States of America and the European Community on cooperation in the regulation of civil aviation safety.

The committee recommended that the European Parliament give its consent to the conclusion of the agreement.

The Agreement which entered into force on 1 May 2011 aims, inter alia, to ensure the continuation of high-level cooperation and harmonisation between the United States of America and the European Union in the fields within the scope of the Agreement, namely: (i) airworthiness approvals and monitoring of civil aeronautical products; (ii) environmental testing and approvals of civil aeronautical products; and (iii) approvals and monitoring of maintenance facilities.

The amendment extends the areas of cooperation between the Parties, where reciprocal acceptance of approvals and findings of compliance can apply, to allow for an optimised resource utilisation and commensurate cost savings while maintaining a high degree of safety in air transport.

The new areas of cooperation shall cover: (i) personnel licensing and training; (ii) operation of aircrafts; (iii) aerodromes; and (iv) air traffic services and air traffic management.

As indicated in the explanatory memorandum accompanying the recommendation, the amendment aims to strengthen EU-US regulatory cooperation, in civil aviation safety, to promote global safety standards, and to enhance the production of civil aeronautical products by taking into account the interests of all concerned actors: pilots, aircraft manufacturers, airport platforms, and airlines.

In addition, the aviation industry has repeatedly advocated closer cooperation, recognition and harmonisation between the two largest markets, the US and the EU.